_Kayden’s POV_

My lungs burned like I had been running for miles even though I had not moved from the shattered window.

The cold night air rushed into the room. It carried the smell of broken glass and the sharp sting of magic. I tasted it on my tongue. It was bitter and wrong.

Leah was gone. Not her soul...not her spirit...but her body.

I forced myself up from the floor. I was still shaking. My knees wanted to fold again. The crushing pressure in my chest still clung to me. It was like an invisible hand had been squeezing my heart. It was not illness. It was not weakness....